Tag: hazardous weather at sea

The US NTSB issued an investigation report on the contact of towing vessel Rivers Wilson and its tow with Norfolk Southern Railway Bridge on the Tombigbee River, in March 2019. The investigation stressed issues associated with poor judgement in high current conditions. 

Heavy weather at sea is a deadly serious and always relevant safety issue, as inappropriate manipulations in such conditions may lead to damage of a vessel, threatening the cargo, the environment or, even worse, human life.

On Firday 14 February, the "MV Caledonian Isles" ferry vessel owned by the CalMac Ferries, faced rough weather conditions as it was struggling to berth at the Ardrossan harbor. Namely its crewmembers had to deal and operate under the storm Dennis' high winds.

Following the rough weather conditions of the Storm Ciara in the UK and Ireland, Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) crewmembers faced strong winds during their rescue operation upon a fishing boat that was stranded without power, on Sunday 9 February in Edinburgh, Scotland.

The Netherlands Coastguard reported that a number of containers fell off a Handy containership in stormy seas 43 kilometers north of Ameland, one of the Dutch West Frisian Islands, on February 11. The container ship had some trouble sailing due to the heavy weather conditions, which led to some containers falling into the sea.

The US NTSB issued an investigation report on the contact of the towing vessel 'Bettye M. Jenkins' with Bunge Grain Facility on the Lower Mississippi River, in February 2019. The investigation identified the captain’s decision to pass ahead of an upbound tow while crossing a river in strong current as key cause of the accident. 

As the video shows, during the severe storm that struck northern Norway last week, high winds drove the Hurtigruten cruise ferry Nordnorge hard against a pier at the port of Bodø, Nordland during berthing. The ferry can be seen trying to deal with the severe weather conditions, but when it approached the dock it was visibly heeling to port.  

Speaking with DNV GL’s narrator, Mathias Steck, IEA’s Keisuke Sadamori, Director of Energy and Security Markets explores energy security in the age of renewables, explaining that the extreme weather conditions taking place today are impacting renewable energy systems and infrastructures around the world, most likely becoming a major energy security concern for the future.

The Swedish Club analyzes an incident of a collision of a container ship with a fishing vessel, while in restricted visibility. The container ship continued its voyage after the incident, which was a very bad decision by the Master, the Club stressed. 

The US Coast Guard issued an alert advising mariners of the dangers when sailing hazardous bars in the Pacific Northwest, mostly during night hours and heavy weather. The USCG has already published regulated navigation areas for specific locations on the Oregon and Washington coasts, while also created guidance for these areas.